Mind Bent
by himayamata
Summary: Another tie-in to the Bizarre Bender story. A bizarre earthbender named Xun attempts to kill Avatar Korra. Asami Sato will later uncover the secrets behind Xun's bizarre power and the people behind it.


**this is a tie-in to the Bizarre Bender. chapter 4 is coming soon.**

* * *

**Mind Bent**

Twelve years ago, the Republic City councilmen have been summoned in a discussion about King Ping of the secret Earth Kingdom and his conquest for world domination. Of course, this is very important because Republic City is next in King Ping's list. Councilman from the Water Tribe Jiang argues with the councilman from the Fire Nation, Tai , "She's five years old, for spirits' sake! Even if she can bend the three elements, we will not send a child to war!"

The Fire Nation councilman responded, "Then what are we going to do? Pray to the spirits that the mad Earth King will change his mind and stop his invasion?"

"We should call the United Forces. They can help us." Dong the councilman from the Earth Kingdom said. "They have more firepower than King Ping's army of savage earthbenders."

"I heard reports that most of those savage earthbenders can metalbend. Imagine how powerful his army is. The United Forces can not help us."

The councilman of the Air Nomads Bai Huang remained silent for he does not know what to do in this situation. Tai suggests, "There is no other choice but to approve the Neo-Bender Project."

Jiang knows about it but fears it. He heard there are many failed experiments, many dead patients in that project. They have injected a lot of chemicals inside a bender's system. The councilman disagrees, "No. That project has been stopped. There is a law now about it. No more human experiments, Mister Tai."

"That project is our only hope, councilman. Now let the others decide this." The chairman of the council Heng is calling the vote, "All in favor of the Project?" Tai raised his hand and waited for the three councilman's decision. He can see that Jiang disapproves but how about Bai Huang and Dong. After a few seconds later, no one has voted for the project. With disappointment, Tai leaves the hall after Heng finalizes the vote.

Night came, Councilman Tai has sent a message to the people behind the project. He wrote to them to continue the experiments.

* * *

Today, the young head doctor of the Ping Mental Institute fills up the syringe with the white serum and injected it to the subject, strapped tight on a chair. "Calm down, Mister Chen. It will sting a little." The pain started to gnaw at the elderly man as he felt the cold needle piercing his skin. Doctor Ping has successfully inject the serum inside Test Subject 43. The man felt dizzy for a while as the drug circulates in his system. Doctor Ping turns the chair towards her and talked to Mister Chen, "How do you feel?"

"Um... I feel okay. It's feels good..." Chen relaxed after struggling for five minutes. The pain is gone, the fear is gone and so is his mind. "Where am I? Who are you?"

The doctor faced him closely and spoke her words, "I'm your mother. You will obey me. Do whatever I ordered you to do. At all cost."

"Yes, Mother." The man responded in a dead tone. She then unties him and sends him to the other test subjects who are waiting for her next order.

"Now go have fun with your brothers and sisters."

"Yes, mother." Mister Chen ran to the big hall like a little boy.

Later, at her officer, a large man approaches her and gave her news. "Mother, the crates have just arrived at the harbor."

"Thank you, Wei. Tell the others to wait for it outside. I need more of this for my testing."

"Yes, mother." the large man left through the window using his waterbending.

* * *

Asami has arrived at the Institute with Kai and Chan. The two men carried the crate to the doorstep. "Um, Miss Sato. Can you knock the door for us?" Kai asked nicely. Asami knocks and waits. Inside, Wei took a peek on the door hole and saw Asami and the two men carrying the crate. "Oh no."

The waterbender ran back to report Doctor Ping. "Mother! Mother! We have company!"

Then they heard the knock coming from the door. Ping gave him an order, "Take them down and bring them to my lab."

"Yes, mother." Wei called two patients, one is a firebender and the other is an earthbender. Wei warned the firebender, "No lightning. You know what will happen."

Just outside, Asami felt a strange thing coming in their way. Kai makes his move to the Sato girl and used his charms. "So, you are the daughter of Hiroshi Sato: the inventor of the Satomobile, right?"

Asami turns at him and saw the man's charming smile which looks awkward at the moment. Chan pulled the guy away from the woman and warned him. "Don't you ever do that in front of Miss Sato. She has some personal problems, okay? Don't you ever mention about her father."

"Okay. Sorry..." Kai scratched his head, feeling ashamed for speaking to her like that.

But then, Asami heard something coming from inside the building. "Guys, we should be-" However, two large men leaps out from the window and lands between Asami and the two boys.

"Attack!" The waterbender does his loud cry as he bust the entrance door open. Pieces of the door were scattered and some parts hurt Asami. Kai and Chan were easily knocked down by the earthbender while Asami was attacked by the furious firebender. She dodges his fireballs and head back to her car. The firebender threw a powerful fire to the vehicle, destroying it. Asami lost her escape ride however, the electric glove was safe from wreckage of her car. Asami quickly wears it as the firebender charges towards her. In a quick agile move, she struck the bender with a powerful volts of electricity to his system. The firebender screamed in pain. "Aaarrrghhh! It burns!" He wailed as if something is hurting him from the inside. And suddenly, his own flesh began to fry and fire pops out from his pores. The man is on fire and in complete pain.

"What is happening to him?" Asami was a little confused as she saw the firebender was burning uncontrollably.

"His powers are unstable! Thanks to you, woman!" Wei yelled. Feeling the heat and fear while watching one of his men burning, he knows what will happen next he does not do something about it.

The firebender wailed as loud as he possibly can and drops down to his knees. He then begged to them, "PLEASE! KILL ME NOW! KILL ME BEFORE I... I... arrrgghhh!" Then a powerful water pellet pierced the firebender's head, blowing it up. Wei did what he had to do. Asami screamed as she saw blood and splatter of tissue all around the headless body. Before she could calm herself down, the earthbender knocks her down in one powerful punch. "So this is the daughter of Hiroshi Sato. Not so tough after all."

Minutes later, Asami woke up, strapped on a chair. A spotlight shines above her in the dark room, inside the darkness, Kai and Chan were standing there, watching her. "Hey! Can you untie me, please?" The two men did not respond like they have not heard her. "Hello? Are you guys alright?"

"Oh, they are fine, Miss Sato. They are just drugged by my serum." The mad Doctor Ping makes her appearance before Asami like a villain revealing his identity to the hero. "I'm so surprised that you come here to see my work."

"What are you planning to do with those milk jars, Ping!" Asami asked. But then she added, "Are you behind Xun's attacks to the Avatar?"

The doctor smirked at the woman, "Yes. I did."

"How and why?"

"I love to answer those questions, Miss Sato. But it is a very long story." Ping takes a chair and sat near her prisoner. "I'll make it short anyway. Long ago, when Avatar Korra, or maybe you too, are still kids and there is a big threat going on at the Earth Kingdom, the councilmen of Republic City had a discussion that in the absence of the Avatar, we create a drug that will boost the benders' abilities. A hundred times more powerful than any bender in the world, reaching the level of the Avatar. It's called **Project: Neo-Benders**. However, many disagreed using that drug and so it was kept hidden. Their decision caused a thousand lives lost in that war. We won in the end. Hooray to that! But the councilman Tai from the Fire Nation has instructed the doctors to continue the operation, making drugs and sell it to the few benders in the United Forces. One of them is Xun."

"Is that it? This is the reason you sent Xun to kill Korra?"

"Yes. It's business. If the Avatar is dead, the four nations will buy the drugs, or in a nice term, serums to their soldiers. More money!" The doctor lets out a joyful smile. "We are going to be rich. What do you think, Miss Sato? You are a businesswoman yourself, am I right? What do you think? Smart, eh?"

"I say it is crazy! You know what that guy can do! He is dangerous. Those people who will be taking those drugs will become a threat to the public. They will be hard to control."

"Oh, I might add." Doctor Ping said as she looked through the window watching Republic City below. "I have put a secret ingredient in those drugs. An ingredient that will follow everything I say."

Asami cannot believe what she is hearing. "You mean controlling a person's mind? That is impossible!" Impossible indeed. No one in the world can do this. Not in a hundred years.

The doctor giggled, excited to show her secret to the woman. "Do you want to know?"

Asami did not respond but she knows that mad doctor will say it.

"It is cactus juice from the deserts of the Earth Kingdom. It is very strange but interesting plant." Now Ping talks like a Chemistry teacher instead of a mad doctor who plans to kill the Avatar. Her innocent face and voice does not match her mad mind and dirty hands. While the doctor explains about the drug, Asami takes her time untie herself. She tries to stretch and pull the rope, hoping that it will loosen. Unfortunately, she ran out of time as Doctor Ping finished her explanation to the drugs ingredients and advantage. "Oh, I also tell you, Miss Sato, the disadvantage of this serum. If the patient has the serum in his or her system, one electric shock can cause the serum to... react violently. It will boost the bender's ability to an uncontrollable rate. That is why my firebenders are not allowed to use lightning because it will trigger their painful detonation."

Now Asami recalls the firebender that she struck with begged to end him. He is about to explode. "So what happens if you lost control all of your patients?"

"That is completely impossible. They will always follow my commands as long as I speak clearly to them. Would you want a demonstration?" Doctor Ping called the two companions of Asami; Kai and Chan, who were injected by the same drug during the time of their capture. She gave them an order, "Kill each other." Instantly, the two men grabbed each others' necks and tried to choke one another. Asami yelled at them in fear, "What are you doing? Stop it! STOP!"

"I told you, Miss Sato. They will never stop. As long as they hear my voice, they will follow every command I make." Ping enjoys watch the two killing each other. In her point of view, it is entertaining to watch. Asami could not bear to look, she turns away and tried to imagine that nightmare is over. And then a sound of bone snapped, Kai is the victor. He broke Chan's neck, finishing him. Ping applauded, "Good work! Now you can go. Take the body with you."

"Yes, mother." The mindless looking Kai replied, not suspecting his face and fingers filled with blood.

Ping added one nasty command, "As you leave my office, I want you to dispose of the body and eat it."

Kai bowed down, telling that he will fulfill her command. Asami was disgusted. "How could you? What kind of person are you?"

"Let's just say I'm madder than King Bumi and more sadistic than Firelord Ozai." Doctor Ping answered sincerely. She walk towards her desk and opens a set of syringes with the serum in it. "It is time for your medicine, Miss Sato. Stay still."

Asami immediately think of something to stall the mad dcotor, she can feel the rope is loosing. Ping loves to answer questions and so Asami made one. "Wait! One last question: How many patients have you injected with that?"

"Twenty, Miss Sato. And most of them are firebenders."

"Why?"

"If Xun fails, I'll use Plan B." The doctor's smirk is much bigger and sinister than ever was. Asami has a bad feeling about this. She prayed to the spirits that Korra, Mako and Bolin will stop Xun and Doctor Ping before it's too late. Asami felt her hands are free, she immediately defends herself from the doctor as she's about to inject the drug to her. Startled by Asami's fierce attack, Ping tries to run away but she trip and the syringe that was in her hand pierced her skin, accidentally injecting herself. The drug did its effects to her.

"Well, that is bizarre." Asami takes the syringe out from the drugged doctor. She checks her up if Ping is well. The doctor was silent like the grave but her eyes are wide open, watching at Asami. It is like she is waiting for something, a command or something. Asami thinks it through, "Um, hello, I'm Asami."

The doctor then asked in a more naïve tone, "Are you my mama?"

"Oh, I'm not. But I am a friend." Asami is now taking advantage on the drug's effect. "A friend that you can trust."

"Friend..." Ping said, liking that word as she said it. "Friend..."

"Okay, Ping, listen to me. What is your Plan B?"

"I can whisper it to you." Ping made a childlike smile.

Asami moves closer and listen to the doctor all she needed to know. After hearing Plan B, Asami was shocked and terrified to hear it. It is devastating if that happened. She makes one last question. "How can I stop it?"

"By my command." Doctor Ping gets up and walks towards her desk. She gave Asami a tape recorder. The woman doesn't know why the drugged doctor gave it to her. "Use it well." Ping makes a big smile to Asami. It is awkward that the sadistic enemy has turned into a valuable ally.

Asami thanked the doctor but she made it sound polite. She does not know how the doctor will react if she does not do it politely. Now she has the tape recorder in her possession, this is the only way to stop Xun and the other benders.

"You should go now." Ping said as she looked through the window and watches the city lights of Republic City. "The fireworks is about to start in a couple of minutes. And I don't want to miss it."

**TO BE CONTINUED IN BIZARRE BENDER CHAPTER 4**...


End file.
